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741. Dogfish Head Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew

For Christmas I finally got a Dogfish Head glass so I decided it was a good time to open some bottles that have been in the fridge for a while. This bottle is probably two years old. I have had it on tap a couple of times and while I enjoyed the beer it was not something I needed to open and review immediately.

Bitches Brew is an incredibly complex beer, brewers description includes the following “a fusion of three threads of imperial stout one thread of honey beer with gesho root.” Appearance is dark brown with a relatively thin tan head, what I would expect from an Imperial Stout. Aroma is sweet chocolate, coffee and something else I cannot identify. Taste has the same chocolate, only a very light hint of coffee (which is good as I do not enjoy coffee), dark fruits and a slight bitterness which seemed a bit odd. This beer changed quite a bit as it warmed so I would recommend opening and sipping it for at least an hour to get the full depth of aroma and flavor.

A very good beer that is worth picking up if you see it your local bottle shop.
Pros: Complex aroma and flavorCons:Alcohol Content: 9.0% ABVIBU (Bitterness): 38Rating:Brewers Website:Dogfish HeadBrewers Description: In honor of the 40th anniversary of the original release of Bitches Brew, Miles Davis’ 1970 paradigm-shifting landmark fusion breakthrough, we’ve created our own Bitches Brew — a dark beer that’s a fusion of three threads of imperial stout and one thread of honey beer with gesho root. It’s a gustatory analog to Miles’ masterpiece.

Featuring the album’s iconic artwork, created by the late Mati Klarwein, on its label, Dogfish Head’s Bitches Brew was unveiled at SAVOR, An American Craft Beer & Food Experience, on June 5, 2010, at the National Building Museum, Washington DC.

According to Dogfish founder and president Sam Calagione, the ale is “the ultimate partner for chili or spicy curry chicken” and best enjoyed “sipped cool, not cold, from a snifter or red wine glass while listening to the Bitches Brew album.”

Sam was drawn to the alchemical spirits in Bitches Brew right out of college, acquiring a copy of the album “within months of the first time I brewed a batch of homebrew in my apartment in New York City. I listened to it when I was writing my Dogfish business plan. I wanted Dogfish Head to be a maniacally inventive and creative brewery, analog beer for the digital age. You could say that my dream was to have Dogfish Head, in some small way, stand for the same thing in the beer world that Bitches Brew stands for in the jazz world. You can imagine how excited we are to be doing this project 17 years after I wrote that business plan.”

“There’s a spirit of innovation, of creativity and individuality, that’s at the core of Miles’ music,” said Adam Block, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Legacy Recordings. “Sam and Dogfish Head approach their art from the same place and consequently the marriage is an easy and cool one.”